Asperity
Asperity ({not transcribed}) , noun
[Latin asperitas, from asper rough: compare French aspérité.]
1.
Roughness of surface; unevenness; -- opposed to smoothness.
The asperities of dry bodies.
2.
Roughness or harshness of sound; that quality which grates upon the ear; raucity.
3.
Roughness to the taste; sourness; tartness.
4.
Moral roughness; roughness of manner; severity; crabbedness; harshness; -- opposed to mildness.
Asperity of character.
It is no very cynical asperity not to confess obligations where no benefit has been received.
5.
Sharpness; disagreeableness; difficulty.
The acclivities and asperities of duty.